The final numbers are in for President Obama's eight fiscal years which ended 9/30/17 and according to the Office of Management and Budget the percentage increase in total spending outlays were less compared to the percentage under the previous fiscal years of President George W. Bush. And that confirms the administration that had the two smallest increases in total federal spending outlays in the last 45 years were the democratic administrations of Bill Clinton and Barack Obama.
Total spending outlays for Bush 43's eight fiscal years was $20.829 trillion It was $29.080 trillion in Obama's eight fiscal years for a 40% increase in total federal spending outlays. Total spending outlays for Clinton's eight fiscal years (preceding Bush 43) was $13.145 Trillion. So total federal spending outlays in President Bush 43 fiscal years as shown above increased 58% over Clinton's eight fiscal years.
The big spender was President Ronald Reagan when you compare his eight fiscal years to the previous eight fiscal years of President Carter and Nixon-Ford (that is Carters first and only four years and Nixon-Ford last four years. Total federal spending outlays under the eight years of Carter-Nixon-Ford was $3.614 trillion. Under Reagan's eight fiscal years it was $7.554 trillion, a whopping 109% increase in total federal spending outlays. And this is the President the republicans still say cut federal spending. Yeah right.
When we compare federal spending in President Clinton's eight fiscal years to the previous eight fiscal years of President George H. W. Bush 41 and Ronald Reagan (four years under George H.W. Bush 41 and the last four years of Reagan) the answer is. Under the eight fiscal years of the Bush 41-Reagan administrations total federal spending outlays totaled $9.570 trillion. Under the eight fiscal years of President Clinton federal spending outlays totaled $13.145 trillion for an increase of 37%.
It should also be noted that under the Obama administration, year to year total spending outlays were less than the previous year three times for fiscal years ending 9/30/2010, 9/30/2012 and 9/30/2013. The first time that has happened since 1955 according to the Office of Management and Budget. As this writer commented many times in past PolitiDose articles, the republicans claim of being the fiscal conservative party is pure myth and the numbers prove it.
The Reagan administration was the first to break the trillion dollar spending mark in fiscal year ending 9/30/1987. It took 14 years to reach the 2 trillion spending mark by the Bush 43 administration in fiscal year ending 9/30/2002 and it took Bush 43 only 7 years to reach the 3 trillion dollar spending mark in fiscal year ending 9/30/2009. And we know that Trump's proposed budget for fiscal year ending 9/30/19 is projected to reach the 4.4 trillion dollar mark. This writer believes the federal government will actually reach the 4 trillion dollar spending mark at the end of Trump's first fiscal year which ends 9/30/2018.
The people were sold a fairy tale concerning republican conservatism and being best at handling the federal government's fiscal house and finances and the news media ran with the rhetoric, but the readers of PolitiDose know the true story. Conservative republican Presidents? They have not existed since President Dwight Eisenhower who was the last republican President to balance the federal budget in 1960.
Stay tuned for the fiscal disaster that will take pace on President Trump's watch. And when it happens, you will have read it here first in PolitiDose, your daily dose of political commentary.
This commentary written by Joe Lorio
